The Red Line
by cocoalover1956
Summary: "How long does childbirth take?" Killian looked astonished, not that Emma could blame him. He was just a regular guy minding his own business and now he was helping a stranger through labor.


The rattling sounds of the subway train rang in Emma's ears as she tried to get comfortable. Late February in Boston was more difficult than she had expected. She could hardly find anywhere warm enough to sleep and the end of her pregnancy loomed over her like a guillotine. Soon enough she'd give birth and it would only be a matter of time before social services took her baby away. After all, who would leave a child with a homeless, penniless teenager?

The subway made a stop somewhere downtown – she'd stopped paying attention a while ago, consider she had no destination in mind – and one other person stepped inside. It was a young man, around the same age as her, maybe a little older. He had inky black hair and a bone structure to kill for. Noticing how handsome he was, Emma looked away and tried not to blush.

"Excuse me lass," the stranger spoke up. His accent was British. "Do you know how to get to Misthaven Street from the next station?"

"No, I'm not a native." Emma replied bluntly.

He didn't seemed deterred by her rudeness. If anything, it seemed to amuse him, "Nice to know we already have that in common. As I'm sure you already guessed, I'm new to the States. Where are you from?"

She'd like to know that as well. When she was just hours old, a little boy found her abandoned on the side of a highway and she had been tossed around the foster care system ever since. "Arizona." She lied.

"That's in the southeast, right?"

"Southwest."

"Forgive me, I wasn't the best at geography." He smirked, "But I make up for it in other ways."

Emma raised an eyebrow, "Are you seriously flirting with me right now? I'm nine months pregnant."

"Oh? I must have completely missed that." His smirk grew, but Emma could see genuine humor in his eyes, his noontime sky on a cold, clear day blue eyes.

Once again she turned away, this time to hide her blush. She was being ridiculous, getting a crush while probably days away from having a baby. And why was he bothering her anyway?

As the train continued on, Emma found it impossible to get comfortable. A dull but persistent pain throbbed in her lower back. Finally she decided to stand up; maybe changing her position would help. No sooner had Emma gotten to her feet, the subway came to a screeching halt. She grabbed one of the poles to keep from falling.

Even more to her surprise, the stranger leapt to his feet and helped her re-position herself. "What was that?"

"I have no idea." Emma muttered, trying not to become too comfortable with the warmth of having his arms around her. She pulled out of his reach and sat back down. "Maybe there's a power-outage or some- _aaaahhhhhhhh_!" Emma cried out when she felt a rush of warm fluid coming out from between her legs.

"Holy shit." the stranger gaped.

Tears came to her eyes, "No, not now. Any time but now." She prayed the subway would get moving soon she could get to a hospital, but the metal subway car remained silent and still.

The stranger pulled out a handkerchief and mopped her eyes, "Hey, listen to me: you and your baby are going to be alright. We'll get out of here soon enough."

Emma nodded, though she didn't believe him, "What's your name?"

"Killian Jones. And yours?"

"I'm Emma. Emma Swan."

"Beautiful name." he smiled. "Do you have someone you can call, let them know what's going on?"

"No." she admitted, her face becoming pale. "I'm more of a loner. You should just call 911."

"I'm afraid I don't have my phone on me, love." Killian sighed, "You?"

"Couldn't afford one." Emma gulped. A feather-light sensation ran down her spine when he called her "love". That's probably what all English guys call girls, she told herself. Emma screamed as a contraction kicked through her, the worse physical pain she'd ever experienced. It was over quickly, but from the few birth and pregnancy brochures she had read, she knew it was just the beginning.

Killian took off his coat and laid it on the seat next to her. "Here, lay on this. Can't have that baby landing directly on a dirty bench." He lifted her legs so her lower abdomen rested in the middle of the coat and her head rested on the previous seat.

"It'll be hours before the baby comes." Emma pointed out.

"How long does childbirth take?" Killian looked astonished, not that Emma could blame him. He was just a regular guy minding his own business and now he was helping a stranger through labor.

Emma sighed, "I don't know exactly, just that it usually takes a really long time." It was humiliating, admitting that she didn't know what she was doing. The next contraction came over her, prompting another shriek of pain. Emma clumsily wiped the tears from her face.

"Hey, why don't we talk?" Killian suggested.

"Talk? Why would you want to talk?"

"To get your mind off the pain."

Emma took a deep breath to try to alleviate some of her suffering, "Okay. Whatever. Why were you headed to Misthaven Street?"

"I was going to go out with a couple of friends."

"Sorry I ruined your night out."

"It's nothing, love."

"I thought you said you were new here?"

Killian chuckled, "Yes, but I didn't arrive yesterday, love."

"Are you close to them, your friends?" Emma muttered.

"Yes, I'd say I am." Killian did sound incredibly fond of them. "I moved here about a year ago, the minute I turned eighteen. My brother…my brother Liam had just passed away. Came down with something while he served in the navy."

"Oh. You don't have to tell me all that if you don't want to."

Killian nodded. He changed the subject back to his friends, David and Mary Margaret Nolan, a recently married young couple. David worked at a local animal shelter while Mary Margaret had just begun working as an elementary school teacher. They sounded fairy tale perfect, the Nolans, like the protagonists of a classic Disney movie.

Then he decided to amuse her with anecdotes from his childhood. He had been born in Ireland, but grew up in London with his brother and his cousin Tanya Bell, or Tink as she preferred to be called. He'd had a rough time, but came out of it doing fairly well, if he did say so himself. After moving to the States, he met the Nolans, at that time only boyfriend and girlfriend, when the three of them helped a lost, injured dove.

"So did the bird ever find its flock?" Emma asked hoarsely. Somewhere along the way, her head ended up on Killian's lap. It scared her how right that felt.

"Aye, she did." Killian replied. "A stupid storm wasn't gonna keep her grounded."

"That's nice to hear."

She had lost track of how long they'd been trapped. Her contractions were getting harder and coming faster, so she knew the baby would arrive at any moment. Emma felt something pushing hard against her opening.

"Killian, I think it's time." Emma whispered, still terrified at the prospect of bringing another person into the world.

"I guess it's now or never." Killian got up and went to the side other of her, preparing to help the baby come out. Once there, he froze, realizing the implications of such a task. "Oh…um, Emma, you're going to, uh, have to take off your pants."

She covered her face with her hands and swore. As the force of her contractions made her dizzy, Emma fumbled to undo her jeans and push down her underwear. The feeling of knowing Killian was staring at her vagina made her want to never look him in the eye again.

"The baby's crowning. At least I think it's crowning." Killian said, sounding a little woozy himself. "Aren't you suppose to push now?"

"I think so." Emma did just that. All she wanted in that moment was to get this over with. She pushed as hard as she could, once, then twice, then-

The newborn's cry filled the subway car.

Emma deflated, exhausted by her ordeal. She raised her head to see Killian holding her child. His hands were covered in blood and who knows what else, but he hardly noticed.

"It's a boy." Killian breathed. His eyes were practically glowing, "You're a mum Emma."

She tensed when he placed the child in her arms. Her baby boy had Neal's hazel eyes, Emma noticed, and his brown hair. As much as she hated Neal for what he did to her, part of her wished he was here. Tears ran down her cheeks.

"He's beautiful." Killian told her.

Then, for the first time, Emma opened up to him, "I'm afraid Killian. I think I'm gonna lose my baby."

"Are there complications?" he asked tentatively.

"Maybe, I don't know. I stopped going to my OBGYN three weeks ago. If something happened, I wouldn't know about it." Emma wept. "God, I've already failed as a mother."

"Don't say that." Killian said gently, "Three weeks out of nine months? That's not so terrible."

Emma shook her head, "You don't understand. I'm seventeen. I'm a runaway."

"I figured as much." Killian responded.

She blushed in shame. The need to explain herself forced Emma to spill her secrets, "I have no idea what to do for a baby, or what good parents are even like. My birth parents abandoned me when I was a baby. I got taken in by the Swans, but they put me back in the system when they found out they were gonna have a baby of their own. No one ever wanted me.

"One of my foster mothers, this woman in Minnesota, tried to put me in the path of a moving car. So I ran and never looked back. I ended up in Portland, where I met this guy. I, um, tried to steal his car, but it turns out he had stolen it first. I think he found that really amusing because he took me out for a drink.

"We were together for maybe four or five months traveling the country: robbing places, running cons, breaking into houses and motel rooms. He taught me how to be great criminal." Emma snorted bitterly, "He was older, twenty-two, and I couldn't believe he'd be interested in a girl like me. I thought he loved me. I thought he was going to be my family."

Emma's voice broke. Unable to continue, she just held her son tighter and sobbed. Killian, bless him, put his hand over hers, waiting for her to calm down.

"Just before I found out I was pregnant, he promised to take me to Tallahassee. We were gonna start a new life there, a legal life. Before he met me, he stole some really expensive watches, but he left them in a train station locker in Phoenix. He didn't want any guards recognizing him, so I went there and took them for him. Then we planned to sell them on the black market, and make enough cash to move to Florida.

"He sold me out. He took the watches and fled, but not before sending in an anonymous tip to the cops. The judge took pity on me though, since it was my first offence and I was a kid who got used by an adult. I didn't get any jail time, but a ton of community service. My new group home was just awful; my foster parents went out of their way to remind me that I was trash and that I had no choice but to give my baby up for adoption. I didn't want to at first, that's why I ran again, but I came to realize that they were right about me. I can't be a mother."

"I don't believe that." Killian said softly. "My mother had Liam when she was sixteen, but managed to create a good life for him, for the both of us. Sometimes all you need is to have someone believe in you."

Emma lowered her eyes, "Do you believe in me?"

"I do."

Something in her told Emma that he was being completely sincere. "You barely know me."

A blush crept up Killian's neck, "No, but I'd like to. You're bloody incredible to have survived what you did."

The compliment shouldn't have caught her off guard, but it did. She couldn't remember the last time someone had been so kind to her. Before she could say anything, the train groaned to life again.

"Well it's about time." She chuckled nervously.

Killian helped her completely remove her ruined pants and wrapped his hoodie around her waist. Then he wrapped the baby in his blood-stained coat.

"You've given me all your outerwear. You're gonna freeze."

"Small price to pay." He shrugged. "We just have to get you two to a hospital."

Just minutes later, the subway stopped at the station. A small crowd was waiting to catch their ride and they were all shocked to see the bleeding, almost half-naked Emma leaning on Killian and holding a whimpering newborn.

"Could someone please call an ambulance?" Killian asked.

A short time later, the ambulance arrived. Emma and her child were loaded onto inside, but Killian wasn't allowed to go with them. The EMTs did tell him what hospital they were taking them to. He found the nearest payphone and called David.

"Hey, mate, it's Killian. I'm calling from the subway station."

"Killian?" David answered somewhat angrily, "Where the hell have you been?"

"Listen the subway car I was in got stuck. I was trapped in there for hours."

"Oh. Are you okay?" the anger in David's voice evaporated, "Where are you?"

"Eh," he looked around, "Red Line, at Downtown Crossing. Look, there was a girl with me. I helped deliver her baby."

" _What?_ "

Killian laughed, "The kid just couldn't wait to get out. I hate to pull you out of whatever you're doing, but I need to ride to Misthaven General. Also, could you bring some of Mary Margaret's old things?"

While Killian was waiting for David, Emma was being admitted to the hospital. One nurse helped her into bed while another took the baby away for testing.

"Is he going to be alright?" Emma begged to know.

"As of now, he doesn't seem to be in distress." a nurse answered, "We just have to wait for the results."

While she waited, Emma took time to fill out the birth certificate. To Emma's eternal relief, her son was full term and completely healthy. The nurses returned him to her, now that he was all cleaned up and wrapped in a hospital-issued blanket.

"Hi." Emma said shakily, "I'm your mother." The baby made a fuss and started to whine. "Did I do something wrong?" Emma asked the nurse frantically.

She just smiled and said, "I think he's just hungry. Would you like to breastfeed him?"

"Yeah."

The nurse nodded, "Then I'll leave you alone." She closed the door behind her.

Emma unbuttoned her top, unhooked her bra, and held the baby against her chest. He eagerly began to suckle, and Emma felt a rush of love and contentment flood over her. When he'd had his fill, the baby burped loudly and dozed off. Emma got dressed again.

The door creaked open, and Killian poked his head inside. "Hey."

"Hi." Emma smiled. "He's asleep."

"I brought friends." Killian said as he stepped in. Following him were a pretty young woman with short dark hair and a tall blond man. "Emma, these are my friends Mary Margaret and David."

"Hello there." Mary Margaret greeted her sweetly. Her husband waved.

Emma tried to maintain her smile. Meeting new people had never been easy for her. "It's nice to meet you. Killian's told me a lot about you."

"Good things I hope." David said lightly.

Mary Margaret set down a bag of clothes and toiletries on the stand next to Emma's hospital bed. "I hope you don't mind, but David and I packed you some things."

"Wow, I really appreciate this." Emma said genuinely. These people had done more for her in one night than most of her foster parents had in months.

David and Killian came over as well. "Does the little guy have a name yet?" Killian asked.

Emma smiled proudly, "Henry James Swan."

"Good name." David complimented, "Does it have any particular meaning?"

"No. I just like those names."

"So Emma," Mary Margaret began, "where are you going after you're discharged?"

Emma lowered her eyes, "I don't have anywhere to go." she admitted quietly. Killian squeezed her hand comfortingly.

The Nolans looked to each other. To Emma, it appeared that there were having an entire conversation with just their eyes.

"You know, Mary Margaret and I just renovated our basement."

Emma closed her eyes, "I couldn't ask you to-"

"We're offering." Mary Margaret interrupted. Her eyes were wide with compassion.

"Just until I get back on my feet."

.

.

.

A year later, Emma moved out of the Nolans' basement and into a new apartment with Killian. Three years after that, she changed hers and Henry's last name to Jones. And a year after that, they were joined by a blonde, blue-eyed little girl named Aria.


End file.
